Graduates nurses employed with Bupa Villages and Aged Care and Ramsay Health Care will have the opportunity to swap places on three-month exchanges under a new partnership set to begin next year.
The exchanges are intended to boost graduates' skills and experience, ultimately improving patient care in the operators' hospitals and residential aged care homes.
Managing Director Bupa Villages & Aged Care Australia Andrew Kinkade said, “This partnership is the first time an aged care organisation has offered nurses the opportunity to work in a hospital setting as part of their graduate experience.
"At the same time, Ramsay graduates will gain experience working with multi-disciplinary teams and in building relationships with residents that go beyond acute care."
Ramsay Health Care’s Chief Nurse and Clinical Services Director, Associate Professor Bernadette Eather, said, “The program will offer our graduates comprehensive clinical experience and the development of key skills for managing aged care patients who can experience a variety of short and long-term health issues, as well as complex issues like dementia.
"These are important skills for nurses in hospitals and residential aged care homes, given our nation’s ageing population."
In 2024-25, the aged care sector is estimated to be short 1,490 Registered Nurses. The gap has decreased substantially in the last six months, largely due to due to the Aged Care Work Value Case, which was predicted to bring 10,000 workers into the sector annually by the Department of Health and Aged Care.
